Busu
by hrtiu
Summary: Kaoru has never once been called beautiful in her whole life. This fact becomes increasingly grating as her frustration with Kenshin's lack of reciprocation grows. EDIT: Last chapter has been significantly lengthened due to reader feedback.
1. Chapter 1

AUTHOR'S NOTE: "Busu" means "ugly," or "ugly hag." The "engawa" is the sort of porch surrounding a room. Let me know if you have any better definitions or other words you think should be defined. This is the first time I've ever published anything on fanfiction, so suggestions and reviews are welcome! I plan to write one or two more chapters.

Busu

"Busu! Stop telling me what to do!" Yahiko screamed, directly before throwing down his bokken and storming from the dojo.

Kaoru let out a sigh as she left the dojo and sat down on the engawa. The day before had been Tsubame's birthday, and Yahiko had begged Kaoru to give him the day off so he could do something special for her. Kaoru had agreed on the condition that Yahiko practice his latest kata when he wasn't with Tsubame. Yahiko had failed to keep his promise. He tried to convince her he had, but to Kaoru it was obvious he'd skimped on his exercises, and so she'd ordered him to clean the dojo floor. He hadn't reacted well.

Kaoru kicked her feet in the dirt under the engawa and leaned past her knees, admiring the way her toes disturbed the particles of dust in the air. Her plans for the afternoon stormed off along with Yahiko, which left Kaoru with time to think.

The day before, on Tsubame's birthday, Kaoru had also been left with a little spare time due to Yahiko's absence. She'd taken the opportunity to go to the market and look for some new kimono. Kenshin had begun receiving a small stiped from the government after the Shishio affair, so Kaoru now had a little extra money to replace her more worn out clothes. Kaoru had suspected that Kenshin would have refused even this small stipend were it not for Kaoru's sake, and she was grateful.

Kaoru had perused the wares of each vendor at a leisurely pace. She'd found a nice navy blue cotton kimono made from sturdy material with cute white diamond shapes scattered across it and picked it out. She'd found another equally serviceable striped red kimono and decided to purchase both of them. She had planned to get three practical kimono to wear on a daily basis, but she was tempted to reserve the last kimono for special occasions. Her heart had stopped as she saw a beautiful kimono hung up behind the salesperson in a place obviously reserved for her more expensive wares. It had been silk, not practical at all, and made with a light blue fabric graced by large reddish pink chrysanthemums, and Kaoru doubted if she'd ever seen anything so elegant in her life before.

Kaoru had checked the price and the chrysanthemum beauty definitely cost more than she intended to spend. However, just as she had been about to decide against the extravagant purchase, Kaoru had been caught up in a vision of herself pouring tea for Kenshin in her new kimono, and of Kenshin leaning over to her and telling her in a low voice, "you look beautiful."

She'd bought all three kimono with no regrets.

On her way home from the market, Kaoru had been in such an exuberant mood that she had decided to take the longer, more scenic route home along the river. This path was rarely trafficked and Kaoru had been enjoying the picturesque solitude when some voices had captured her attention.

"Akiko, I got these for you. I hope you like them."

"Oh Satoshi, they are so beautiful!"

Kaoru had happened upon an ardent young couple, and she'd even walked so far along the path without noticing them as to see them embracing before she'd quickly darted behind a bush in embarrassment. Kaoru couldn't deny that she liked gossip as much as the next person, but she'd be mortified to walk in on such a personal conversation.

Based on her observations from behind the bush, the man, Satoshi, had given his lover, Akiko, a string of pearls and had currently been tying them around Akiko's neck. Her ears had burned as she was subjected to their sweet talk.

"Well, you are beautiful. I wanted them to match you. Akiko, you are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen."

Akiko had looked down and had hidden her smile daintily with her hand. Kaoru had felt a sudden and intense surge of resentment towards the lovely Akiko. Kaoru had looked away sharply, taken aback by the strength of her reaction. She had thought back to her earlier fantasy of Kenshin telling her how beautiful she was.

"What a joke," she had thought to herself. "You are kidding yourself if you think he is ever going to say something like that to you."

Although Kaoru was not, by nature, a pessimistic person, Kaoru had been hoping for such declarations for so long that the only way to stave off disappointment was to lower her expectations.

Now annoyed at herself, Kenshin, and the adoring couple, Kaoru had decided she was sick of waiting behind a stupid bush. She had marched forward along the path, determinedly not looking at the startled and sheepish couple.

Kaoru had been in quite a mood for the whole rest of that day, and if she was being honest, her harsh reaction to Yahiko this morning was probably a leftover of her bad mood from the market trip.

She wasn't sure how long her foot battle with the dust had been going when Megumi and Sano happened upon her.

"Oy! Jo-chan! We're here for lunch," Sano said, startling Kaoru from her reverie.

"Lunch?" Kaoru responded.

"Yes, Ms. Tanuki," said Megumi. "I was planning to drop off a salve for Ken-san today, so he invited me over for lunch. Along with rooster-head, of course."

"Oh, I'm sorry I didn't know about that. Come in, and I'll get things ready," said Kaoru.

"No need, Kaoru-dono!" Kenshin said as he popped his head out of the kitchen. "This one is sorry he forgot to tell you about Megumi-dono and Sano coming over, but this one has already prepared lunch. No need for Kaoru-dono to trouble herself."

Kenshin graced Kaoru with his signature smile.

Kaoru, Megumi, and Sano went into the dining room, where Kenshin had already set the table for five, and he noticed Yahiko's empty seat as he entered the dining room with the rice.

"Will Yahiko not be eating with us today?" he asked.

"He stormed off earlier, although I honestly doubt he'd pass up on food," replied Kaoru.

"Busu's right," said Yahiko as he burst into the room. "I'm hungry! No grudge is worth an empty stomach!"

Kaoru's eyebrow twitched upward in anger.

"Please stop calling me that. And you still have to clean the dojo floor."

"Whatever, busu. You're not the boss of me. I'm your only student, remember?"

Kaoru didn't respond, which surprised her guests. Usually this was about the time her bokken was out and soon to make painful contact with her only student's body.

Eager to change the subject, Kenshin asked, "So, Sano accompanied Megumi-dono over here for lunch?"

"Yeah," said Sano. "I've heard there have been some toughs hanging out on the streets close by, and I thought it would be better if someone walked with her."

"Really?" asked Kaoru, "I have been walking around the neighborhood and I haven't felt nervous at all."

"Of course _you_ haven't," said Megumi. "No one would attack a tough raccoon girl like you. But I am so beautiful, any thug would have a hard time resisting such a gorgeous target, even if he knew better."

Megumi swished her hair and laughed delicately behind her hand. Kaoru frowned.

"Megumi-dono is quite beautiful, that she is," said Kenshin agreeably.

At that moment, something in Kaoru that had been slowly building up the past few days, or maybe even the past few years, snapped.

"ENOUGH!" shouted Kaoru, slamming her hands down on the table. "Busu, busu, busu! I get it, OK? I'm ugly. You all don't have to keep reminding me all the time!" And with that declaration, she shot up from the table and left, leaving her friends' mouths hanging open with shock behind her.


	2. Chapter 2

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Thanks for the reviews! They are much appreciated! There will probably be one more chapter after this one. Please let me know if you have any comments/suggestions. EDIT: I made a couple of small edits since uploading earlier today.

Chapter 2

Kenshin, Megumi, Sano, and Yahiko all stood practically motionless after Kaoru's outburst. It wasn't that Kaoru's emotional explosion was terribly unusual. She tended to wear her heart on her sleeve, and each of them had been the target of her fiery personality more than once or twice. It was more the vulnerability of her outburst that caught them by surprise. Kaoru was generally a very confident person, and her anger in the past had never been about her own perceived weaknesses.

Sano broke the silence. "Come on Fox, why do you always have to rile her up like that?"

"Me?" Megumi replied. "I didn't call her ugly. I _meant_ that she looks so strong and capable, a bandit would feel too afraid to attack her." She folded her arms in a confident manner, her defense convincing exactly no one.

"Well it's definitely not entirely your fault. Yahiko-chan here is the one who calls her busu all the time. Shouldn't you be grateful that she's teaching you and feeding you?"

Sano's accusation activated Yahiko's surprisingly well-developed sense of guilt, and he pulled his arms in, making himself look smaller.

"I guess so..." the war between relieving his guilt and avoiding responsibility played itself out on Yahiko's face. Eventually, avoidance won. "But it was Kenshin that made her mad, though!" he said indignantly.

"Oro?"

Kenshin had been silent during the whole discussion, his face concerned but also pensive. He seemed genuinely surprised by Yahiko's accusation.

"This one did not think he was saying anything offensive," he said, confused.

"I hate to say it, but I think the little squirt's right," said Sano. "Yahiko and the Fox have teased Kaoru before, and she didn't react like this. It must be Kenshin's fault."

"Orororo…" Kenshin looked dazed.

Megumi chimed in, "Yes, Yahiko and my comments didn't help, but it was definitely Kenshin that caused this."

"But Megumi-dono, this one honestly doesn't know what he did wrong," Kenshin said, almost pleadingly.

"Oh Ken-san, you're too innocent to realize that what you said was possibly the most heart-breaking thing a woman can hear."

"Megumi-dono, what did this one say? Please, this one would like to fix it. This one does not like to see Kaoru-dono unhappy."

Megumi was about to respond when Sano gave her a look that said,"Are you sure it's your place to say what you're about to say?". She stopped, and looked thoughtful for a moment before responding.

"Ken-san, I can't tell you everything. A lot of the answers you're looking for are Kaoru's to tell. But I will say that no woman enjoys hearing that another woman is beautiful in her presence. It may not be logical, but when a man says, 'that other woman is beautiful,' we tend to hear, '...and you are not.'"

"But Kaoru-dono is such a practical, straightforward person. It never seemed like she cared about that kind of thing," protested Kenshin.

"Right or wrong, most women care, even when they pretend not to. And besides that, Kaoru is young. I think sometimes you and Yahiko forget that fact because she provides for you, but you can't expect her to have all of the confidence and self-awareness of an experienced woman."

Kenshin thought about it for a moment. He knew he should trust Megumi. He knew few women, and she was probably his best source of information for understanding them. If he was being honest he'd barely even known Tomoe.

Tomoe. Had she ever been insecure about her looks, as apparently Kaoru was being? He didn't think so. But then again, Tomoe was constantly being told how beautiful she was. By her friends, by Kenshin's comrades, even by random strangers in the streets.

Tomoe had also had a maturity forced on her by violence and tragedy. Kenshin had always appreciated her maturity, but he also found pure joy in Kaoru's relatively innocent and carefree life. Kaoru didn't have the same kind of sophisticated, elegant beauty that Tomoe had, but that didn't mean she wasn't beautiful. Indeed, Kaoru was the main source of beauty in Kenshin's life. Her exuberance, her anger, her passion, her energy—it was all beautiful to him.

Wasn't that clear to her? She was the only person he'd said goodbye to before he left for Kyoto. She was the only person who'd given him enough reason to stop wandering. She was the only person since Tomoe who'd ever given him a home.

If Kaoru's outburst was any indication, she still didn't realize how important she was to him. Did she need it spelled out for her?

Kenshin started speaking again, haltingly, "This one… does she expect this one to… to… _tell_ her?"

Megumi rolled her eyes before replying, "Yes! Obviously!"

Kenshin paled.

Sano stood and tugged at Yahiko's ear while simultaneously jerking his head at Megumi and thumbing at the door. "We've done enough damage. Let's leave him alone now. I think he'll figure out what to do."

Megumi sighed and said, "I certainly hope so," before rising gracefully to leave. She paused at the door. "Ken-san, just talk to her, OK?" Then she was gone.

Kaoru was in the dojo, letting off some steam. With each stroke of her bokken she berated herself for her childishness.

 _How could you say that, Kaoru? You don't need Kenshin to tell you you're beautiful. Do you think he would like someone as juvenile as you are? Do you think he would like someone without an ounce of confidence?_

She stopped and knelt over, panting from exertion. She stared at the small pool of sweat collecting on the floor underneath her, and for a moment she was too tired to be mad at herself.

Now that she'd calmed down, Kaoru sat down and started thinking more rationally about her situation.

Kaoru knew she had a lot of great qualities. She also knew a lot of those qualities were more important than physical beauty. Kaoru knew she was compassionate, strong, smart, and determined. Surely those things were more important than beauty? How could she be so vain?

But she couldn't quite bring herself to not care. She was 18. If she wasn't beautiful now, she'd never be beautiful. Now was the time that men were supposed to start showing interest in her. Actually, men were _supposed_ to start showing interest in her several years ago, but Kaoru figured it was OK if she was a late bloomer, or if it took some men a couple of years to realize the tough swordswoman was in fact, a woman.

And besides all that, Kaoru figured that all women, even the objectively plain, had been told at least once, by someone, that they were beautiful. But Kaoru never had. Her mother had died when she was young. Her father hadn't been the type to tell his daughter she was beautiful. She'd never had a beau or even female friends to fawn over or admire her.

 _That doesn't matter_ , she told herself. _You don't need to be desperate for compliments, Kaoru. You're better than that. And besides, you know you don't want just anyone to tell you you're beautiful. You want it to be Kenshin. And that's not going to happen._

Never one to wallow in self-pity, Kaoru stood up, dusted herself off, and started stretching. She was ready to end her exercises, take a nice long bath, eat dinner, and get some sleep. She knew she'd feel better in the morning.

"Kaoru-dono?" She jumped upon hearing her name from a familiar voice.

"Yes Kenshin?" she replied.

"This one has prepared a bath for you."

"Thank you. I'll be there soon," she said as she turned away from him to put her bokken away. Kenshin was always so thoughtful. She really had nothing to complain about.

"Kaoru-dono." She jumped again, whirling back towards the voice. She hadn't realized he was still in the dojo. He continued, "Kaoru-dono, this one would like to talk with you after dinner, that I would."

Kaoru felt a thrill of excitement run through her that she immediately tried to quash. Kenshin had never set aside a specific time just to talk with her before. She tried not to read into it too much. He probably just wanted to make sure she was OK after her outburst that afternoon.

"Sure," she said. Suddenly her evening had turned from a quiet, relaxing night to several hours of tortured speculation and anticipation.


	3. Chapter 3

EDIT: This is a newly edited version of Chapter 3. I've made a couple of small tweaks throughout the chapter, and significantly altered the ending. Based on multiple reviewers' suggestions, I've lengthened the ending quite a bit to try and make it less abrupt. Hopefully this ending is more satisfying. I think it flows quite a bit better.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: I set this story after the Jinchuu arc, but before Sano and Megumi left. I recently realized after reviewing the manga that this makes the story slightly non-canon, since Aoshi and Misao are not at the dojo. Hopefully you guys won't mind and can still enjoy the spirit of the story. I spent a lot of time really trying to get into Kenshin's head in this chapter, and I hope it seems in-character. I am a pretty extroverted person who tends to overshare, so it's not always easy for me to understand how someone like Kenshin thinks. Oh yes, and this is the last chapter, unless I'm struck with some brilliant idea for extending it. Enjoy, and please let me know what you think in reviews!

Kenshin's mind was racing as he prepared the fish for their dinner. Kaoru was taking her bath, so he knew he wouldn't be interrupted.

What had he been thinking? He knew he needed to talk to Kaoru, to help her feel better. That was why he'd asked her to talk to him after dinner. But he still had no idea what he was going to say to her!

 _Kenshin, you idiot,_ he said to himself, not bothering with the "this one"s when he was mid-internal monologue, _how could you set this all up without any hint of a plan?_

He knew what she probably wanted him to say. She probably wanted him to say something like, "Kaoru-dono, this one thinks that you are very beautiful." But he couldn't say that! There was a reason he'd said Megumi was beautiful when he had never said that about Kaoru, and it had nothing to do with Kaoru's looks.

Kenshin wasn't a simpleton. He knew Kaoru was in love with him. He also knew that he was in love with her. She'd told him she wanted to be with him, and they'd held hands the one time. But years of tragedy and sorrow had taught him to be cautious, and as yet they had not done anything more than that. And he knew if he said something like, "you look beautiful tonight," it might lead to something more.

And Kenshin _wanted_ that something more. He remembered vividly the night of May 14th, the only time he had ever held Kaoru. Despite the sorrow of that moment, Kenshin's traitorous memory preserved in exact detail how it felt to hold her close to him. He remembered how her feminine frame had fit against his, how his hands had glided over her back, how her hair had smelled, and the texture of it falling against his face.

Kenshin paused from chopping the onions for a moment, indulging in the enjoyable parts of the memory while conveniently leaving out the more painful circumstances.

Yes, he definitely wanted Kaoru. That wasn't in question. But Kenshin couldn't just jump into things. While he had found closure regarding Tomoe's death, he still felt a large amount of trepidation towards relationships with women. Accidentally killing your wife tended to complicate your personal relationships. Couldn't Kaoru understand that?

Many of the Kamiya dojo's neighbors would tell you that Kenshin was a shy man, but that wasn't quite true. He didn't often express his feelings in words, but when he decided to show his affection, he did so without hesitation or embarrassment. It was that decision-making process that took time.

It all came back to that caution—that fear, not of women, not of embarrassment, not of rejection, but that fear of causing suffering. That fear of repeating old mistakes. It was a fear he meant to conquer. He fully intended to eventually make Kaoru his, but he didn't want to feel rushed into it. He needed to take one careful step at a time in order to keep his anxieties and nightmares at bay. Why couldn't Kaoru just let him take his time with this?

Suddenly, Kenshin felt a feeling that was entirely foreign to him: resentment. Why couldn't she just be more patient with him? He felt boxed in, like he was being forced into something he didn't want. He slammed the kitchen knife down on the counter in frustration.

Kenshin looked down and noticed the onions he had been loosely dicing were now in tiny, microscopic pieces. He immediately felt guilt wash over him. He was so consumed with his thoughts that he didn't notice Kaoru, freshly changed and ready for dinner, entering the kitchen. He jumped a little as she looked over his shoulder at the unlucky onions.

"Wow, Kenshin, you really slayed those onions, huh," Kaoru said with a light laugh. She made her face mock serious before executing some precise swipes through the air with her hand. "Hyah! Hyah! You unprincipled onions will not be allowed to endanger the new era! Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu Tsui Sen!"

Kaoru laughed until she noticed Kenshin's unusually sober face staring at her.

"…Sorry, I guess that wasn't a very funny joke…"

Kenshin looked a little uncomfortable before responding, "Dinner will be ready in a few minutes, Kaoru-dono."

Kaoru, who had clearly been forcing lightheartedness to mask her nerves, now looked decidedly worried. "Ok," she said meekly before exiting the kitchen.

 _Great,_ thought Kenshin. _Now she probably thinks I'm going to tell her I'm leaving again or something._ He scooped the onions off of the cutting board and into the soup he was making and started running his fingers through his copious bangs.

He shouldn't have let himself get upset. It was perfectly reasonable for Kaoru to want him to move things forward. She was young, he couldn't expect her to wait around forever. It certainly wasn't fair of him to make her wait while he continued living at the dojo, effectively keeping any alternative suitors away. And deep in his heart of hearts, Kenshin knew he probably wouldn't take any action unless his hand was forced.

Kenshin sat down heavily on the stool behind him, trying to fully face himself and his pattern of behavior He hadn't hugged her until he had had to leave for Kyoto, he hadn't told her about Tomoe until after Enishi had attacked, and he hadn't held her hand until after she'd confessed her desire to stay with him. A lot of this came from his own feelings of unworthiness, of his desire not to impose himself on others. But Kaoru had made her wishes known, and he had no more excuses. It was time for him to act.

Attempting to reverse some of the worry he'd caused Kaoru in the kitchen, Kenshin was extra solicitous and kind during dinner.

"There's plenty more fish, Kaoru-dono. Would you like some more?"

"This one has prepared your favorite kind of tea, Kaoru-dono. Let this one pour it for you."

"Should this one fetch the tea cakes? It is such a nice night and they would surely be a delicious addition to our meal."

This, of course, only served to make Kaoru even more nervous, convinced as she was that Kenshin was only trying to soften the blow of whatever bad news he was going to deliver after dinner.

Yahiko could sense the tension thick in the air, and had wolfed his meal down as quickly as possible before mumbling some nonsensical excuse to get out of the dojo. Neither Kenshin nor Kaoru even attempted to convince him to stay.

Kenshin and Kaoru sat in complete silence for several minutes after Yahiko left. Kaoru picked endlessly at her plate while Kenshin took fruitless sips from his long-empty teacup. The silence between to the two grew heavier and heavier until Kaoru finally broke it.

"Kenshin, we can always talk some other time if you don't feel up to it," she said, almost desperately. She seemed close to tears.

Kenshin almost took the offered out, but forced himself to forge ahead. "No, no. This one would really like to talk with Kaoru-dono. Would Kaoru-dono care to join this one for a walk? We could see the fireflies."

Kaoru sniffed a little, then nodded. They both stood and she followed him out of the dojo.

They were both silent until they'd walked a way down the path. Kenshin was very focused on what he needed to say, and how he might say it.

For her part, Kaoru was convincing herself that she would be fine if Kenshin rejected her. There were plenty of other fish in the sea, and she knew she could find another person who would appreciate her. _And he'd probably be taller and more muscular_ , Kaoru added, out of preemptive spite.

Eventually, at a bend in the path with a nice sturdy log that looked made for long conversation, Kenshin sat down and asked Kaoru to sit down next to him.

Kenshin thought furiously about the different ways he might start their conversation, a million different ideas running through his brain, but as he looked up at her face, all of those thoughts immediately fled his mind.

She looked _beautiful_. Kenshin hadn't really noticed before, but Kaoru was wearing a new kimono. It was blue with red flowers on it, and the pattern was really quite becoming. It showed off the figure she usually kept more or less hidden under kendo attire, and also made Kenshin aware of how much she'd matured in the time he'd known her. Her face was lit up by the fireflies gathered around a small pool of water by the log, and her eyes looked large and deep in their pale light. Her hair had been pulled up as elegantly as she knew how, and its inky blackness cried out to be touched.

At a loss for words, Kenshin reached his hand up and touched her cheek, staring in wonder at her beloved face. Kaoru seemed frozen in place, unsure of how to react to his wholly unexpected and unprecedented actions. She simply tried to remember as much of the moment as possible, attempting to burn the memory of his touch into a part of her memory that would never fade.

"Kaoru-dono," Kenshin said, barely choking out the words, "you are beautiful."

Kaoru, who had been staring right back into Kenshin's eyes, burst into tears.

"You really think so, Kenshin?" she asked, feeling a little pathetic but really wanting an answer.

"Of course! How could this one think otherwise?" Kenshin said, trying to put as much sincerity as possible into his reply so she would be left with no doubt.

"But… but you've never said anything before," Kaoru sniffed, breaking the spell a little as she moved to wipe her nose with her hand.

Kenshin thought for a moment about how to respond to the question Kaoru hadn't quite voiced. While he'd been preparing dinner in the kitchen, he'd worked out in great detail why he hadn't told Kaoru any of his feelings for her before. There was a lot he could say to try and explain his behavior, and Kaoru deserved to hear it all one day. Thankfully, though, Kenshin was wise enough to realize the kind of response that was most needed in this moment.

"Because this one was stupid, Kaoru-dono. This one is sorry."

Kaoru smiled a big, genuine smile that lit Kenshin up from the inside out. Kenshin reached to grab her hand, and she let him, interlocking their fingers.

"Kenshin… It's really nice to know that you think I'm beautiful, but…" she paused for a moment, clearly not wanting her words to come out wrong. "…but a man can admire a woman's looks without… _caring_ for her." She looked at him earnestly, begging him to understand so she wouldn't have to elaborate any more.

Kenshin smiled his trademark soft smile at her and released her hand, instead wrapping his arm around her shoulder and pulling her gently against his side.

"Kaoru-dono, this one cares for you very much, that I do. If Kaoru-dono would allow it, this one intends to stay by your side and never leave."

At first, Kaoru felt sublime bliss fill her soul upon hearing Kenshin's confession. After a moment, though, Kaoru started to feel some anxiety invade her mood. Kenshin felt her stiffen at his side and gave her a questioning look.

"Would Kaoru-dono not like that?" he asked, experiencing for the first time a shred of doubt in Kaoru's feelings for him.

"No, it's not like that at all," replied Kaoru, reaching her arm around his waist and hugging him briefly. She then withdrew from him and leveled a steady gaze at him, expression very calm and serious.

"It's just… Kenshin, we've talked like this before, and nothing really changed. I just… Mou! Kenshin, I don't want to be your landlady for the rest of my life."

Kenshin let out a little sigh of relief before smiling again at Kaoru. This was a concern he believed he could address.

"Kaoru-dono, this one hopes you do not think this one treats you the way he would treat any landlady. This one has been slow to change, that is true. But this one is trying. This one will try to change faster, if Kaoru-dono can also try to be patient. It is, after all, hard for an old man to change his ways," Kenshin smiled again self-deprecatingly.

Kaoru smacked him playfully on the shoulder. "Old man, pfft! You don't look a day over 20. It's not fair," she pouted in mock annoyance. Kenshin relaxed as they shifted back into their old banter. But things couldn't be the same after that. Kenshin intended to keep his promise to Kaoru, and try to move their relationship forward more.

They walked back to the dojo together. While they were still too shy to hold hands, they stood closer together than before, occasionally brushing shoulders or hands when encountering unevenness in the path.

Kenshin entered the front gate first, then turned and offered Kaoru a hand as she stepped in after him. Based on the loud snoring coming from his room, Yahiko was already asleep.

When Kaoru stepped into the courtyard, Kenshin didn't move aside to make way for her, and Kaoru almost ran straight into him. She suddenly found herself very close to him, still holding his hand. She looked at their joined hands, then up at his face. Kenshin's expression was very focused in a way Kaoru had only ever seen before when he was in a fight, and Kaoru felt her chest tighten. Slowly, she removed her hand from his and placed both of her hands on his chest, setting her fingers on the fabric of his gi and allowing her thumbs to rest on his bare skin.

She could feel Kenshin tense under her fingers, but he didn't back away. He maneuvered one hand around her waist, and the other he brought to her cheek, gently running his thumb along her jawline. Kenshin pulled Kaoru closer and closer to him, looking directly into her eyes as if discovering for the first time the marvels of the human iris. Kenshin seemed content to continue their staring match, but Kaoru, who had never before been kissed, could no longer take the anticipation. She closed the remaining distance between them in an instant, and kissed Kenshin firmly on the lips.

It wasn't their best kiss. Kaoru didn't really know what she was doing, and Kenshin was pretty out of practice. But to Kaoru, it was one of her most treasured memories. Kenshin had already told her she was beautiful, but it was his kiss that convinced her more than his words.

In the coming years, Kaoru would learn to appreciate Kenshin's daily small acts of tenderness and affection as his most meaningful way of expressing his feelings for her. The way Kenshin treated her, like she was the most precious thing on the planet, was more valuable than any pretty words. Without Kenshin ever having to utter a word, Kaoru knew that she was his beloved.

Of course, she was still human. She liked Kenshin to tell her, at least every once in a while, that she was beautiful.


End file.
